The Next Generation

[Lady Jenn]

"I would introduce you to your friends' rescuer," Deena said. "But Spyder's teleportation powers are...no-one's really explained it to me, all I know is he has to put himself into a form of suspended animation for some time afterwards."

[Lawshenk]

“ no idea what you mean sorry “

[Lady Jenn]

"Spyder's powers don't work like most teleporters' do," Deena said. "He doesn't vanish then reappear where he wants to be, he...has to travel through another realm. The one time he has mentioned it to me he said if he had another way of teleporting he would use it, because the experience is unpleasant to say the least."

[Lawshenk]

“ I think I get you but i loose control”

[Lady Jenn]

"He can't afford to," Anya said, appearing behind them so suddenly that Deena nearly jumped out of her seat in fright. "The place he crosses through to teleport, there are...things there that it would be dangerous to have enter our world. That is why he must meditate afterwards, to ensure his mind stays where it belongs, here."

[Lawshenk]

“ I see”

[Lady Jenn]

"What's worse is he's still basically a kid," Deena said. "He's not even eighteen, but Anya brought him here because she feared what would happen if people around him discovered his powers."

[Lawshenk]

" not sure I can help ! " She looked at them both

[Lady Jenn]

"We're not asking for help," Anya said, chuckling. "Spyder seems to have about as much control as he's ever going to, and he's not asking for help at the moment. Would you like a tour of this place?"

[Lawshenk]

“ I guess yes pleas,but what I mean why are you telling about this spider?”

[Lady Jenn]

"Because your friends might not have escaped without his help," Anya replied. "In a perfect world he would be able to come and say hello to you himself."

[Lawshenk]

" you mean he might not have left and the most injured behind in a perfect world" she corrected her " so let us start the tour, before I reprogram some nanos "

[Lady Jenn]

She led her through to a vast room, at the centre of which was a large holographic console, in front of which sat a young woman with a helmet covering her face. "This is what alerted us to the attack in the first place, an intricate array of satellites and monitoring stations which can detect even the smallest spike of superpowers. It's also how my father and I have found recruits for this place, including the one who monitors these machines."

[Lawshenk]

" impressive" she said but was slightly lying " what did it show when I arrived from another universe then?"

[Lady Jenn]

"It showed an anomaly in space-time," the helmeted woman replied. "We have seen anomalies before, but this was unlike any I saw previously. Had I not been aware you were near friendly powered people we would likely have dispatched Spyder to help you."

[Lawshenk]

" hum " she said a little doubtfully

[Lady Jenn]

"It is not helped by the sheer volume of information this system presents me with," the woman said. "It can take me time to filter it, unless there is an obvious emergency."

[Lawshenk]

“  bet”

[Lady Jenn]

"My apologies," the woman said, removing her helmet to reveal a woman only slightly older than Jenn, a mop of raven hair on top of her head and piercing golden eyes. "My name is Karla," she said, offering her hand. "Some people call me Grid, although how they chose that name, your guess is as good as mine."

[Lawshenk]

" I don't mean to disturb you " she smiled " but pleased to meet you Karla, " she held out her hand to shake

[Lady Jenn]

"At this point my powers are so sensitive I can detect things even without the helmet," she said, smiling as she shook Jenni's hand. "It's more there so I can filter out any distractions. You're one of the few people who saw my eyes and didn't immediately freak out or assume I was wearing contact lenses."

[Lawshenk]

" well they are unusal but my dad brought me up not to be rude, "she coyly smiled

[Lady Jenn]

"I think it's something to do with my powers," Karla said, laughing. "But once I realised I couldn't change them back I just learnt to accept them."

[Lawshenk]

" oh I see" she smiled " so erm what else is there to see"

[Lady Jenn]

"Unless you want to see the dormitories or the allotments there's only one other thing," Anya said after a moment. "But considering it's just an observatory it's probably not that interesting."